Wire package



Sept. 26, 1961 D. A. HIRST WIRE PACKAGE Filed Feb. 24, 1960 DONALD A H/RLST BY M W ,4 TTORNEY United States Patent i 3,001,642 WIRE PACKAGE Donald A. Hirst, RD. 1, Lambertville, N.Y. Filed Feb. 24, 1960, Ser. No. 10,723 4 Claims. (Cl. 206-52) scribed in eopending application Ser. No. 671,197. However, such packages have not provided for the ready attachment of the wire in one package to that in another. As a result, it has been necessary to stop the operation of the winding device or other equipment using the wire every time the wire in a container is exhausted.

In accordance with the present invention, the advantages inherent in the use of a container in combination with a body of wire are retained but means are provided for receiving and holding the tail end of the wire Patented Sept. 26, 1961 side walls 6 of the container. The core 14 of the spool in position to permit ready attachment of the leading end of the wire in another container thereto. It is, therefore, possible to draw the wire from one package after another in a continuous operation without interrupting the operation of the winding or wire using equipment.

These advantages are preferably attained by providing the container for the wire with means for receiving and holding the tail end of the wire in an accessible position for attachment of the leading end of the wire from another package thereto. In the preferred form of the prment invention, the package further is provided with means for shielding or protecting the tail end of the wire so that it will not be displaced or become entangled with other portions of the wire in the package as the latter is whipped about in being spun or drawn out of the container.

Accordingly, the principal object of the present invention is to provide a wire package embodying a container having a body of wire in the form of coils or turns therein with means for receiving and holding the tail end of the wire in a position wherein it is readily accessible for attachment to another wire external to the package.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a wire package with means carried by the container for protecting the tail end of the wire from displacement or entanglement with the wire being drawn from the package.

These and other objects and features of the present invention will appear from the following description thereof wherein reference is made to the figures of the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view through a typical wire package embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a transverse sectional View through the construction of FIG. 1 taken on the line 22 thereof; and

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic illustration of the manner in which the wire of the packages of the present invention may be connected together.

In that form of the invention chosen for purposes of illustration in the drawing, the wire package is of the type shown and described in said copending application. Such a package may embody an outer container or pail 2 having a bottom 4, side walls 6 and a cover 8. Within the container 2 there is located a spool 10 having a lower flange 12 which extends into contact with the is tapered and provided with an upper flange 16 which is of smaller diameter than'the lower flange 12. The body of wire 18 is applied to the core in coils or turns and in such a way as to present an outer conical surface which permits the wire to be drawn or spun out of the container as shown in dotted lines at 20.

In accordance with the present invention, the leading end 22 of the body of wire 18 on the core 14 of the wire package may be located near the top of the package or in any other suitable or convenient position so that wire may be drawn off the spool to a winding device or other equipment using the wire. a The tail end of the wire on the core extends outward from a point near the lower and larger flange 12 of the spool as shown at 24 and is of such length that it may extend upward along the inner surface of the side wall 6 of the container as shown at 26 to a point near the top of the container. If desired, the end of the wire may extend outward and downward adjacent the outer side of the wall 6 as shown at 28 and may be held in place during shipping and handling of the container by the cover 8.

As shown in FIG. 2, the inner surface of the side wall 6 of the container is preferably provided with a depression or vertically extending groove 30 for receiving the vertically extending portion 26 of the tail end of the wire. In this Way, the tail end of the wire is housed and protected from injury by other strands of the wire as it whips about within the container in being drawn rapidly from the spool. The side wall further is provided with a shielding strip '32 which is attached to the inner surface of the side wall and extends outwardly over the portion 26 of the wire so as to embrace the tail end of the wire throughout substantially the entire lengh of the groove 30. This shielding strip not only serves to hold the tail end 26 of the wire in place but also serves to deflect the wire being spun off the spool away from the tail end portion 26 so as to prevent the tail end from becoming entangled with the wire being drawn off the spool.

Before the wire in the package is drawn out of the container or during such operation, the tail end portion 28 may be connected to the leading end 22 of the wire in another package. Thus, as shown in FIG. 3, the leading end 22A of the wire package A extends to a winding device, not shown, Whereas the tail end 28A of the wire in package A is secured to the leading end 22B of the wire package B as indicated at 34. In the same way, the tail end 28B of the wire in package B is connected to the leading end 22C of the wire in the wire package C as indicated at 36. In this way, the wire in any desired number of packages can be connected together to permit continuous operation of winding equipment or other device using the wire and no interruption in the operation thereof is required.

The container 2 of the package may be formed of any preferred or suitable material and as shown in FIG. 2, the groove 30 may be positioned or formed in abutting or overlapping ends of the material which forms the side walls 6 of the container. Further, although the wire in the container is preferably carried by a spool 12 having a larger lower flange and arranged thereon so as to present a conical outer surface, the core of the spool may be of any desired size and shape and the coils or turns of wire may be arranged within the container in relatively loose condition encircling a central core.

The invention is thus capable of use with substantially any type of wire package wherein wire is enclosed within a pail or container. In view thereof, it should be understood that the particular embodiment of the inven- 3 tion shown in they drawing and described above is intended to, be illustrative only and is not intended, to limit the scope of the invention.

I claim: f A package for; storing, handling and feeding wire directly from an open end package comprisinga cyline drical container open at one end, a body of wire in the form of coils therein having an initial maximum diameter less than the internal diameter of the container, the leading endof the wire being; located near thetop of the container and the tail end of the Wire being positioned along the cylindrical side wall of the container and extending from a point near the bottom of the container to a point near said open; end, and means forming a protective shield secured to said wall and enclosing said tail end.

2. A wire package comprising a cylindrical container having a core positioned centrally therein with coils of a Wire encircling said core and circumferentially spaced from said container, the leading end of the coils of wire being positioned adjacent the top of the container and the tail end of the coils of wire extending radially outwardly nearthe bottom of the container and thence upward along the inner surface of the side wall of the container to a point near the top thereof, and a protective shield secured over the upwardly extending end portion of said wire.

3. A wire package comprising a cylindrical container having a core positioned centrally therein with coils of wire encircling said core and circumferentially spaced from said container, the leading end of the coils of wire being positioned adjacent the top of the container and the tail end' of the coils of wire extenidng outwardly 631, the bottom, of the container and thence upward along the inner surface of the side wall of the container to a point near the top thereof, the side wall'of the container having a vertically extending groove formed on the inner surface thereof and s id tail end of the wire being located in said groove.

4. A wire package comprising a container having cylindrical side walls, a core positioned centrally within the container, coils of wire surrounding said core and circumferentially spaced from said container, the leading end of the coils of wire being located near the top of the container and the tail end of the coils of wire extending outwardly from said core near the bottom of the container and thence upward along the side wall of the container to a point near the top thereof, a

v groove formedin the inn'ersurface of the side wall of the container in which the upwardly extending portion of the tail end of the wire is located, and means secured to the side wall container adjacent said groove and extending over the wire therein so as to protect said 7 tail end of the wire.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

